Merchandise display bin



p 1940- D. T. WADDELL MERCHANDISE DISPLAY BIN Filed July 1, 1959 JAN/EN TOP Dzmv T MDDELL,

Patented Sept.24, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 5 Claims.

This invention relates to a display and dispensing cabinet of the type commonly employed in stores where merchandise, such as candy for example, is exhibited to the public behind the glass enclosures of the cabinet and where the salesman may have access to that Inechandise from the rear side of the cabinet.

A primary object of the invention is to provide means selectively permitting a permanent display of the merchandiseabove a lower lot of the same merchandise from which let the dispensing is actually made without disturbing the display lot, or permitting the displayed portion to flow down onto the dispensing floor so as to feed out the merchandise from the display portion as it may be dispensed.

A further primary object of the invention is to facilitate the loading of the display part of the bin, and to adjust the feeding space between the front edge of a cover and the bin floor by simple movement forwardly or rearwardly of the cover. For items that flow freely, the cover is moved forward to any desired position to adjust flow. For items that flow less freely, the cover is retracted to the desired position. As candy or other merchandise items that might be used, differ very greatly in ease in which they flow, and proper flow being important in this type of hopper bin feed, the importance of this feature is readily seen.

A further primary object of the invention is to provide removable means permitting easy cleaning of the cabinet compartments whereby the means removed may carry all of the crumbs or residue from the dispensed merchandise and thereby permit the cleaning work to be done outside of the cabinet rather than inside where it is extremely difficult to get into all of the corners and the like.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those versed in the art in the following description of one particular form of the invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a rear elevation of a multiple compartment cabinet embodying the invention;

Fig. 2, a vertical transverse section on the line 2-2 in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3, a rear view in perspective of the removable bin.

Like characters of reference indicate like parts throughout the several views in the drawing.

lhe cabinet towhich the invention is applied may assume any number of forms, one particular form generally employed being that as illustrated A floor [3 is length from one compartment up to any multiple number of compartments, four such compartments being herein shown, Fig. l. The invention consists primarily in the structure of a bin which is formed to be placed in any one or all of these compartments.

I form a bin, preferably out of metal, to have a door i l from the side edges of which side walls i5 and it are turned upwardly. The upper ends of these side walls are preferably sloped from their rear ends downwardly toward their front ends. Each wall carries a guide channel 11 to slidingly receive therein a cover l8 which may be made of metal but preferably of glass. The guide channels ll are placed in a plane sloping upwardly from approximately the front edge of the floor i l. The side walls I5 and iii are spaced and maintained in alignment one in respect to the other by means of transverse rods l9, herein shown as two in number, passing under the cover iii.

The width of the floor i4 is made to be such that the side walls l5 and it will be in substantial sliding contact with the side walls of the cabinet compartment wherein which the bin may be placed. Also the length of the floor M is made to be such that it will cover substantially the entire area of the floor of the compartment and have the front edge of the bin fioor in substantial abutment with the cabinet front wall Iii. In order to insure this abutting relation, the rear end of the floor it has an upwardly and outwardly sloping portion 20 which may ride down over a transversely positioned bar or strip 2! secured to the floor it of the cabinet. By reason of the slope of the portion 20, the bin will tend to ride forwardly and downwardly by the sloping portion over the bar 2! and thus carry the front edge of the floor M toward the front wall Ill. The positioning of the transverse bar 2! from the Wall if! is made to be such that this action of the seating in the bin will be had.

Preferably the front ends of the side walls l5 and iii of the bin terminate at a distance behind the front end of the floor M, as indicated in Fig. 2. The purpose of this arrangement is to prevent interference with the flow of merchandise that may be placed on top of the bin cover [8 downwardly and forwardly onto the bin floor Hi When the bin cover i8 is in a retracted position to leave an opening between the front edge of that bin cover 13 and the floor I4. Otherwise should the channels ll be carried forwardly, there would be some interference at least upon the sides of this downward flow of merchandise. Also a much neater appearance is obtained as well as a more sanitary condition.

The cover I8 is shorter in length than the floor M. When pushed downwardly to its forward position, as indicated in Fig. 2, merchandise may be placed on top of the cover l8 to flow downwardly thereover against the wall I0 to constitute a display visible throughout the entire height of that wall. Like merchandise may be placed upon the floor i l of the bin to be dispensed therefrom without interfering with the display thereabove. The more common usage, however, is to pull the cover l8 rearwardly and upwardly to leave a gap between the front end of the cover 18 and the floor l4 so that merchandise placed on top of the cover 18 may not only drop against the entire area of the wall H) but may also tend to fiow backwardly under the cover It? so that it may be scooped up off of the floor l4 thereunder and still maintain a display until the supply is diminished or used up.

When the display is to be changed or the merchandise has been used up, the bin is simply lifted out of the compartment and since its floor covers the entire area, particularly of the forward part pf the cabinet compartment, any crumbs or residue will be carried in the bin and thus removed from the cabinet. The bin cover l8, its walls and floor l4 may be cleaned outside of the cabinet and returned again for re-use. Furthermore the extending clear area of the floor M beyond the side walls I5 and I6 serves as a scoop itself to remove merchandise not used up when the bin is to be taken out.

While I have herein shown and described my invention in the one particular form, it is obvious that structural changes may be employed without departing from the spirit of the invention and I, therefore, do not desire to be limited to that precise form beyond the limitations as may be imposed by the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a dispensing and display cabinet having a compartment defined by a front wall, sides and floor, a removable bin comprising a floor, side walls, and a cover angularly positioned in a plane including approximately the front edge line of said floor and sloping upwardly and rearwardly therefrom, said cover being less in length than the floor and being shiftably mounted in said plane below the top edges of said compartment walls, whereby the cover may be selectively pushed forwardly to said line to form an upper display space in said compartment extending downwardly to substantially the bottom of the compartment front wall and opening around the rear end of the cover into said bin, or may be retracted to form an opening from the space in the compartment above the cover between the cover and the front wall and around into said bin.

2. In a dispensing and display cabinet having a compartment defined by a front wall, sides and floor, a removable bin comprising a floor, side walls, and a cover angularly positioned in a plane including approximately the front edge line of said floor and sloping upwardly and rearwardly therefrom, said cover being shiftably mounted in said plane below the top edges of said compartment walls, whereby the cover may be selectively pushed forwardly to said line to form an upper display space in said compartment extending downwardly to substantially the bottom of the compartment front wall, or may be retracted to form an opening from the space in the compartment above the cover, between the cover and the front Wall and around into said bin, an abutment placed at the rear end of said cabinet compartment floor, and an upturned floor portion at the rear end of said bin formed to slide down over said abutment tending to urge the bin forwardly in the cabinet and carry the bin floor front edge against said cabinet front wall.

3. For a dispensing and display cabinet having a front wall, a removable bin comprising a floor normally positioned to have the front edge thereof in close proximity to said wall, side walls on said bin, guides on said side walls, a bin cover slidingly carried by said guides, said guides being sloped to position said cover in a plane extending upwardly and rearwardly from the lower part of said cabinet wall, said cover having a length less than that of the bin floor whereby the cover may be shifted rearwardly within said cabinet to have its front edge spaced behind and above the front edge of the bin floor, or may be shifted forwardly to have its front edge substantially in contact wit the bin floor front edge and its rear edge forwardly of the rear end of the bin floor.

4. For a dispensing and display cabinet having a front wall, a removable bin comprising a floor normally positioned to have the front edge thereof in close proximity to said wall, side walls on said bin, guides on said side walls, a bin cover slidingly carried by said guides, said guides being sloped to position said cover in a plane extending upwardly and rearwardly from the lower part of said cabinet wall, said cover having a length less than that of the bin fioor whereby the cover may be shifted rearwardly within said cabinet to have its front edge spaced behind and above the front edge of the bin floor, or may be shifted forwardly to have its front edge substantially in contact with the bin floor front edge and its rear edge forwardly of the rear end of the bin floor, and means normally positioning the bin in said cabinet to have the bin floor front edge in substantial contact with the cabinet front wall.

5. For a dispensing and display cabinet having a front wall, a removable bin comprising a floor normally positioned to have the front edge thereof in close proximity to said wall, side walls on said bin, guides on said side walls, a bin cover slidingly carried by said guides, said guides being sloped to position said cover in a plane extending upwardly and rearwardly from the lower part of said cabinet wall, said cover having a length less than that of the bin floor whereby the cover may be shifted rearwardly within said cabinet to have its front edge spaced behind and above the front edge of the bin floor, or may be shifted forwardly to have its front edge substantially in contact with the bin floor front edge, and means normally positioning the bin in said cabinet to have the bin floor front edge in substantial contact with the cabinet front wall, said means comprising an upturned sloping rear end bin floor portion, and an abutment in said cabinet down which said sloped rear end may slide.

DEAN T. WADDELL. 

